By EDEM DARLINGTON, Calabar
An aide to the governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade has accused the governor of under-performance, insincerity and lacking in direction.
Dan Obo, who until his resignation was the Director General, Cross River Recreational Park Agency.
Speaking with journalists, Mr. Obo said he had to resign from the Ayade led government because of his conviction that the present government has lost tract.
“It is my believe that appointment is not empowerment. In my opinion I see the background of education as empowerment, what that means is that if you roll out scholarship programs, skill acquisition programmes for the people to benefit, that way they will be better empowered and even help establish other people also. That, for me I think is better than the many appointments” he said when asked if he supported the governor’s over 4,000 appointees.
He said ” If you look at the state today and as at 1999 when Donald (Duke) came in, we are getting worse. We have gotten to that point where we are not growing, not changing and not moving on and so the best thing to do is that they should be change of hand”
“The assessment of the Ayade led government is visible to the blind that it is bad, there is a lot of taxation, sometimes I imagine what they will tell people in 2019. Are you talking about water, electricity, industrialization etc is not found. For me and other average Cross Riverians, I can tell you that this is the worse time we have had in Cross River. God will not punish us again like this in 2019”
He lamented that the governor’s continued delay in conducting local government elections is wrong and should be condemned.
He said he could no longer continue collecting salary as an appointee of the present government because of his conviction. Insisting that the many MOUs the governor has been signing has not translated into any concrete evidence for the benefits of the common man.
Mr. Obo is the latest to swell up the list of those who have resigned from the Ayade led government among which is the Special Adviser on public transportation Barr Edem Ekong.
Does Senator Professor Ben Ayade deserve a second term? By Ekpenyong Ambo (Director General, De-Mandate Advocate Group, Co-Coordinator, Nigeria’s Future Leaders Movement(NiFLeM)).
It is said that one good turn deserves another. Does Governor Ben Ayade deserve a second term in office? Has he performed well to deserve another term?
These questions have palpitated in my head effectuating mixed feelings. The reason is that H. E. Sen.Prof. Ben Ayade if weighed on the scale of some expected deliverable such as security (fighting cult clashes, communal disagreements and bordering struggles) and developmental strides ; I would say he has performed five points on average. But if examined on the slab of economy, health, policy, state cohesion, impartiality, rule of law and fairness, I would say he has flunked the essential test of governance.
Initially, I was one of those who rationalised every of H. E. Ben Ayade administrative faux-pas, but I had to let my conscience find rest. Governor Ben Ayade has disappointed many of his non-fanatical admirers and supporters. He has disappointed me.
Governor Ben Ayade – made appetising promises to Crossriverians in the build-up to the 2015 Gubernatorial election, but none has been fulfilled. I stand to be challenged on this.
I do not want to sound malevolent in this article, but the Ayade government infected a relatively healthy economy with policy-epilepsy. That said; let me briefly examine just four of Ayade’s 2015 campaign promises.
On health, he promised to “ensure that no Crossriverian will have a reason to go outside of the State for medical treatment”.
Has this promised been fulfilled? Are there signs that it will be fulfilled in the next one year in the life of this administration?
On employment, the Governor promised to “target the creation of millions of new jobs a year through industrialisation, public work and agricultural expansion”.
Sadly, instead creating millions of jobs, the Ayade’s government has thrown millions of Crossriverians into the job market.
On housing, the governor promised to “create a mortgage market by reforming land ownership to give ordinary Crossriverians easy access to title deeds”. This has not been achieved.
On electricity, it was promised that “the government shall vigorously pursue the expansion of electricity generation and distribution”. Our electricity generation currently oscillates between hussling and Bill inflation without adequate power supply.
I have chosen to state just four seducing and lofty promises the Governor made during the 2015 Gubernatorial election campaign.
So, the question is, does Ayade deserve a second term in office? I cannot answer this question for Crossriverians, but I have my answer.
Don’t forget the general nature of Cross River State we knew and the Cross River State of today…. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm… Let’s evaluate with clear conscience and think of the decisions ahead.
Long Live Cross River State
Long Live De-Mandate Advocate Group
Long Live NiFLeM Cross River State.